Swiss textile machinery companies made a major impact at the recently held ITME Africa trade show, with 12 member companies from Swissmem (the Swiss Textile Machinery Association) presenting their latest technologies. The event, held at Addis Ababa, featured more than 170 exhibitors from 15 countries. It was organised by India ITME Society.

Post-show reports from the Swissmem companies indicated a high level of satisfaction with the organisation – and the positive impression made by the attractive design of the Swiss pavilion. The business prospects were also said to be upbeat, with Ethiopia and neighbouring East African countries increasingly viewed as fertile ground for technological and commercial developments in textile production. The region is widely viewed as an emerging option for global apparel sourcing, according to a press release by Swissmem.

The Swissmem exhibitors were Amsler Tex, Benninger, Jakob Müller, Hunziker, Grob, Loepfe, Rieter, Bräcker, Graf, SSM, Saurer and Steiger Participations.

“We had good discussions with existing and potential customers and could generate new leads. Besides Ethiopia, East African, and South African countries were also represented by visitors, while students from various textile universities were present to be updated about the latest innovations in the industry. On the whole, ITME Africa 2020 was a very satisfying event,” Rieter’s sales chief for the Asia-Africa region, Gerald Steiner said.

Steiger Participations, the Swiss manufacturer of flat knitting machines, attended ITME Africa to introduce its own products and represent its shareholder Ningbo Cixing China.

“The market of Ethiopia, with a population of more than 100 million, is considered to have good potential for the mid to long term. Various foreign textile manufacturers have already installed production units in Ethiopia, with the attraction of low production costs. Taking into account that it was the first international textile machinery exhibition in Ethiopia and in Africa, the quality of the various meetings with customers from Ethiopia and other East African countries was considered as very good and promising for the future. Some concrete projects are already under discussion,” Steiger sales and marketing executive Carlo Corradi said.

The yarn processing and winding technology specialist SSM (Schärer Schweiter Mettler) also reported a positive experience at the show. “SSM was very glad to have exhibited at the ITME Africa 2020. The well-organised exhibition was an excellent opportunity to meet customers from Ethiopia and surrounding countries, enabling SSM to better understand the requirements of customers in the growing East African market,” area sales manager Robin Gutbrod of SSM said.

Fibre2Fashion News Desk (GK)

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